Conveyer for soldering machines



Sept. 2, 1952 o. WISNER 2,609,078

CONVEYER FOR SOLDERING MACHINES Filed Sept. 21, 1945 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept. 2, 1952 o. WISNER 2,609,078

CONVEYER FOR- SOLDERING MACHINES Y Filed Sept. 21, 1945 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INV ENTOR. 0X50 ZZ/wner,

P 1952 I o. WISNER 2,609,078

CONVEYER FOR SOLDERING MACHINES Filed Sept. 21, 1945 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 \Q Q INVENTOR LS1 I Q 120 ab-67261:

: Y a g I Sept. 2, 1952 o. WISNER 2,609,078

CONVEYER FOR SOLDERING MACHINES Patented Sept. 2, 1952 OttQWisner; Lowell, Mich-.,, assignor .to Lowell.

Specialty Company, Lowell Micha. corpora.-

"tionot Michigan m Application September 21, 1945; 'ScrialNo. 617,768

. This invention pertains to a machme: which is particularly adapted. use: in. thermanufacture oi hand, operatedisprayersfor distributing-liquid disinfectants, insecticideaetc, although it should he: understood-at the outset that the. principles of my invention may be'emhodietd .inmachinesof materially different; typesutilized in the: manufacture of: various. articles;

In the production. of. :sprayers. comprising a hand. operated. reciprocatoryr pump mounted; on a receptacle: in which the liquid. to be distributed isxstored'and. from which receptacle the: liquid-is discharged and atomized by the injector action of air blown across vthe;upperend: of a; tube projecting downwardly into'the-liquid, it is essential that no air leakage; fromthe pump cylinder. into the receptacle occun. as; such leakage would cause the discharge fromv the. receptacle of. more. liquid thansthe' pump would be capable: of 'atomizing. Therefore, inthe production ofv these sprayers it is essential that the sidezseam. of. the. pump cylinder-where it. 1185i upon-i'and isattachedv to the liquid. receptacle be: hermetically sealed. to preelude such. leaka enfromv the: cylinder into the receptacle. One'of. thewpi-irposesv of my present invention :is :to. provide a. novel. and improved machine for sealing suchseam by soldering or, as it. issohaetimes termed; floating said scam.

I Anotherpurpose. or. my invention is to provide a. machine which will: automatically carry the.

pump. cylinders to her soldered pastthe various stations where theyarev fiuxed, soldered, wiped and cooled,.andmove: such cylinders in succession into cooperative relation. with the: various bath tanksor' other'treating'apparatus.

Another fei'iture: ofmy invention resides: in the structure of the jigs. or holders by which the pump cylinders are: held and maintained in predetermined position during their travel: in the machine-rend "in the: devices: cooperating therewith whereby the position of the pumps is changed-as they pass the various operatingstations andwhereby they are released from the holders. at the completion of their travel through the machine.

Another purpose of my invention is to present the pump cylinders in convenientposition for the manual application thereto of thetubes through which the liquid is distharged fl-Omthe receptacles, the machine being adapted to hold the becomes. better understood by-refer- J 4 Glaims- (Cl. l9.8--19 ence: to the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, illustrating an embodiment of'the principles of my invention which at the present time seems preferable for illustrative purposes.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the machine; Fig. 2 isan end view of a pump cylinderior the production of which my machine is adapted; Fig. 3 is a fragmentary sectional-view or such pump cylinder taken on the line- 3-3 of Fig; '2"; Fig. i is an elevation of one side of'my machine viewed in the direction of the arrow 4' in Fig. I; Fig. 5 is a similar view of another side viewed in the direction of the arrow 5 in Fig; I.

Fig. dis a similar elevation looking at'an'end of the'machine as viewed in the direction of the arrow \i' of Fig. 1;

Fig; 7'is an enlarged fragmental sectional-view on the line 1-1 of'Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a similar view on the lin'e' 8- -8? of- Fig. 6;

Fig. 9 is a sectional View on the line 9-9 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 10 is a sectional view on theline Ill-[U of Fig. 8.

Referring to the drawings more in'detail, it will be observed that the machine is triangular in contour, comprising upper and lower triangular frames H and I2, respectively'connected by posts It and supported at a convenient height above the floor upon suitable standards 14.

The frame is provided near its top at the corners with sprocket wheels [5, l6, and H, respectively around which an endless double chain ['8 is trained. Sprocket wheels 15' and i6 areid-lers, but sprocket I l is mounted upon a drive shaft I9 which is driven through suitable transmission 2-1 from an electric motor 22. The chain is driven in a counterclockwise direction viewing Fig. I.

At regularly spaced intervals the chain is equipped with brackets 23- upon the depending arms- 24 of each of which there is pivoted on pin 25 a holder for the work piece to be operated upon, which in the present instance is the shell or cylinder of a reciprocatory hand operated spray pump designated generally on the drawings by reference character 26'. From Figs. 2.3; 8 and 9 it will be apparent that the shell is shaped to provide the pump cylinder portion 21 and the spray chamber portion 28, the portions v being separated by a transverse wall 29 having anai'r discharge port 3| from the pumpcylinder. An end closure 32 having a large central opening 33 for the" dischargev of the spray is double seamed or'otherwi'se secured to the end of the shell. The shell body; which is'made from aiiatsheet oftinplate or other suitable metal, has the edges oi" the sheet joined to form the cylindrical: shell by lock-seaming the edges together to provide; the longitudinal seam 34;"FBetore thezs'helli is moimtz ed on the liquid containing receptacle of the sprayer a liquid discharge tube 35 is secured to the partition wall 29 with its delivery end disposed in the path of air from the air discharge opening 3| from the pump cylinder, so that the air discharged through this opening will by an injector or eduction action draw the liquid from the receptacle upwardly through the tube 35 and cause it to be discharged and dispersed by the air stream into a spray. The tube 35 is secured in proper position to each wall 29 by a drop of solder 36 while the shell is presented and held in pre determined position by the machine, as will be later described. I

;- ;I t will be observed that the tube 35 extends through an opening 31 in the wall of the, chamber 2 8. The tube also projects through an opening in the wall or" thereceptacle over which the shell is disposed, the shell being soldered or otherwise securely attached to the receptacle in a well known manner.

Since considerable pressure is developed in the pump cylinderby the operation of the pump piston, and since the side seam 34 is apt to be loosened or partially opened at and near the juncture of the cylinder 2? with the larger chamber 28, leakage of air under pressure from the pump cylinder through this scam and into the liquid receptacle is apt to occur and, if it does, the pressure created in the receptacle renders the operation of the sprayer very unsatisfactory, as such pressure increases the liquid delivery through the tube 35 so that a stream of liquid, instead of the desired spray, is discharged from the device. One of the functions of the machine embodying my present invention is to seal the side seam of the shellin the vicinity of the partition wall 29 by soldering the lock seam, thereby precluding leakage from the pump cylinder through this scam. For the purpose of holding and manipulating the shell for the application of the solder thereto, and to subsequently present it in convenient position for the mounting of the discharge tube 35 therein, each shell is mounted in a holder previously mentioned as being pivotally supported from depending arm 24 on. bracket 23 attached to the chain I8.

Each holder comprises a head 38 pivoted on a pin 25 from arm 24 of a bracket 23 and equipped with one or more anti-friction cam engaging rollers 39. A supporting frame structure depending from each head 38 comprises preferably a pair of bars 4| and 42 adjustably connected together by bolts 43 projecting through slots in one or more of the bars, so that the length of the frame structure thereby provided may be adjusted to accommodate the machine to shells of different lengths. The lower end of the bar 42 is aeoaov bracket 54 carried by the arm 48.

extends outwardly beyond a shell when in position, has pivotally mounted thereon at 49 a yieldable clamping jaw 5|,which is provided with a notch 52 to accommodate the side seam 34 of the shell, and is urged into clamping position, as shown in Fig. 10, by a coiled expansion spring 53 interposed between the tail of the jaw and a It will be obvious that the shell may be positioned in this holding jaw by moving it laterally between the jaws 41 and 5|, and that the angular position of bent or projected outwardly at right angles to provide a portion 44 upon which a guide block 45 is secured by a bolt 46 or by other suitable means. The guide block 45 is of a size and shape to be received with a reasonable degree of snugness Withinthe lower end of the cylindrical shell 26 of the sprayer barrel, thereby to center and position the barrel or shell to prevent its displacement or wabbling.

A holder or clamp consisting of a fixed and a yielding jaw is mounted upon each of the frame bars 4| and extends outwardly above the bottom 44. From Figs. 8 and 10, particu1arly, it will be seen that a stationary jaw 41 is welded or otherwise flxed to the outer face of bar 4| and is shaped to provide a curved socket for the reception of ashell 2t. The arm .48 ,of the jaw, which the shell to present the side seam outwardly is assured by makingcertain that such seam is positioned in the notch 52 of the jaw 5|. In placing a shell in the holderthe openlower. end is first placed over the guide block 45, whereupon the shell is tilted to upright position with the side seam in extreme outward position tobe engaged in notch '52. The tilting of the-shell Ito'vertical position forces it between thestationary jaws 47 and the yieldable jaw 5|, by which it will be clamped and held in position so that the desired operations can be performed thereon.

The loadingof the machine or, in other words, the placing'o'f the shells in the holders, is done by an operator stationed near the righthand end of the short side of the machine, that is, in the vicinity of the sprocket wheelv l6 of the machine as seen in Fig. 1. At this point the holders are held insubstantially vertical position by a cam or guide rod 55 (Figs. 6 and 8) extending horizontally of the machine in position to engage the rear face of the holder frame and thereby maintain said frame and the shell-mounted therein in substantially vertical position.

When the thus loaded holder passes th sprocket wheel |6,'the rollers 39 of the holder are brought into engagement. with a cam bar 56 (Fig. 4) by whichthe holder, having passed the guide bar 55, is tilted on its pivot into substantially horizontal position. A short. distance beyond the sprocket Wheel [6 a flux tank 5'! (Figs. 4 and 9) is carried by suitable supports 58. beneath the path of travel of the shells. The cam bar 56,- however, isso shaped that as'each shell reaches a. position above the flux tank its outer endis tilted downwardly, as illustrated in Fig. 9, from the dotted line. position .to, the full line position of said figure, whereby that portionlof the side seam in the vieinityofthe bulge forming the spray chamber portion 28,-is submerged .in the flux. The cam bar 56 is-so. shaped as to permit the shell toresume a horizontal position to clear the upper edge of the flux container and the upper edge of a solder bath 59. The solder in bath 59ismaintained in liquid condition by the fiamesof gasburners which are supplied in a manner well known from a gassupplypipe 6|. Here again the shape of the cam bar ;56,is such that the holderistilted to submerge the outer lower portion. of gthe shell in the solder for the purpose of closing and sealing the side seam 34 of the shell in the vicinity of the partition wall 29;

The shell, after leaving the solder bath, is subjected to'awiping action to remove any surplus solder, this wiping'being done by a rotary brush .62, driven in any suitable manner as, for instance, from an electric motor 63 through a. suitable power transmitting belt 64. Afterbeingwiped, the shellis then submerged in a coolingzbath 65 to set; the solderywhereupon'the holder passes beyond the eXtremityof the camrod 56. Control of the position of the shellis there-upon assumed by a guide rod 66, which extends around the apex Ofithg tr ular frame and along the opposite side of said frame, as will be apparent from Figs. 4, 5 and 7.

As the shells travel in succession along the side of the machine shown in Fig. 5, they are retained substantially in the position shown in Fig. 7, which is convenient for the operator seated at this side of the machine to insert into each shell and solder in position one of the delivery tubes 35 as the shell is traveling along. In actual practice, two operators are seated at this station to speed up the production by mounting the delivery tubes in the shells in the manner indicated. These operators work upon alternate shells as they travel along this side of the machine.

As the shells pass around the corner frame where the sprocket wheel I5 is located, an unloading bar 61, disposed in a horizontal position (Figs. 5 and 6) but making an acute angle with the adjacent portion of the path of travel of the conveyor, engages the upper portion of the shells at their sides adjacent to the conveyor and gently releases them from, the clamping jaws of the holder. This is done by simply pressing the shells outwardly, and, in order that injury to the lithographing on the shells may not result, the bar 67 is preferably made of suitable plastic which is smooth and non-abrasive in character. To assist in the release of the shells from the clamping jaws, I have provided, as illustrated in Fig. 6, a bar I3 pivoted to the frame at 14 and provided at one end with a cam surface 15 formed by a loop in the wire which is disposed in the path of the anti-friction rollers 39, by which the bar 13 is tilted in a counter-clockwise direction as the rollers of the successive shell holders progressively pass the cam surface. The other end of the bar is bent to provide an inclined portion 16 shaped to cooperate with the releasing bar 61 in withdrawing the shells from the clamping jaws at the proper position. As the shells are released from the holder they drop in succession into a chute 68 (Fig. 5) from which they are delivered onto a conveyor 69 and thereby transferred to the next assembly station.

From Fig. 6 it will be observed that sections of each of the upper and lower frame members H and I2 are respectively joined by connecting members H and 72 which have adjustable connection with the frame members through bolt and slot connection 13. The adjustability thus provided enables the frame to be expanded to place the chain I8 under proper tension and provide for take-up necessitated by Wear.

It should be apparent from the foregoing that I have provided a machine which automatically applies solder to the side seam where required, and which presents the shells in proper position for the application thereto of the delivery tubes by operators seated alongside the machine. The machine is simple in construction, occupies a minimum of floor space, can be economically produced, and is eflicient and reliable in operation.

The structural details illustrated and described may obviously be varied within considerable lim its without exceeding the scope of my invention as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a machine of the character described including an endless conveyor adapted to travel in a substantially horizontal plane, means for actuating said conveyor, depending brackets carried by the conveyor in spaced apart relation and a plurality of holders each pivotally mounted on the depending end of a bracket for supporting shells each having an exterior projection, each determined position on the holder.

2. In a machine of the character described including a conveyor and a plurality of shell holders mounted thereon for supporting similar shells each of which has a positioning shoulder in a predetermined position, each holder including a supporting frame having 2. depending adjustable part provided with a centering device at its base for engaging with an end portion of a shell, a stationary jaw, a movable jaw pivotally mounted with respect to the stationary jaw, one of the jaws having a notch adapted to engage the shell shoulder thereby to position the shell, and a spring acting on said movable jaw to bias the same into shell-holding relation with said stationary jaw.

3. In a machine of the character described having an endless chain conveyor and means for driving the same, a plurality of shell holders pivotally mounted on said conveyor in spaced apart relation, each holder comprising a pair of jaws arranged to hold a shell in fixed position on the holder, means including stationary cams and cam followers mounted adjacent to the holders whereby said holders are moved into predetermined position with respect to the chain at successive positions, and means including a stationary bar and a pivotally mounted bar for releasing shells from successive holders at a predetermined position.

4. In a machine of the character described, the combination of a triangular frame, an endless chain supported by said frame and adapted to travel in a substantially horizontal plane, one of the sides of said frame being adjustable as to length whereby the tension on said chain may be regulated, a series of shell holders pivotally mounted on said chain in spaced apart relation, stationary cams in the path of said holders for tilting the holders on the chain to dispose them in predetermined positions at various operating stations along their path, and means including a stationary bar and a pivoted bar for releasing shells from successive holders as they reach a predetermined position.

OTTO WISNER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 354,731 Le Grand Dec. 21, 1866 384,825 Coleman June 19, 1888 391,171 McDonald Oct. 16, 1888 522,258 Hodgson July 13, 1894 543,401 Petterson July 23, 1895 695,516 Wilcox Mar. 18, 1902 708,798 Coll Sept. 9, 1902 1,073,907 Kelso Sept. 23, 1913 1,624,250 Johnson Apr. 12, 1927 1,947,471 Holloway Feb. 20, 1934 2,132,145 Cameron Oct. 4, 1938 2,219,724 Quick Oct. 29, 1940 2,292,220 Gardner Aug. 4, 1942 2,376,495 Law May 22, 1945 2,387,160 Loney Oct. 16, 1945 

